Nothing Special
by deviousprincess
Summary: Utau Hoshina has no singing career. She has lost her brother completely to who knows where. She has nothing. Nothing.
1. Hopeless

A/N: I'm writing this new story because.. I'm trying to get to like KukaixUtau more. I used to only like KukaixYaya, and then I found a new Yaya couple to support.. and well, I think you know the rest. XD Anywho, I've had this idea for quite a while and I figured it was time to express it.

Disclaimer: I don't own crap. DX

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All of the students. All dressed in the black uniforms. Everyone was supposedly to pick a specific group to fit in with. The goths, the nerds, the popular crowd.. No, those are all stereotypes, a blonde haired girl thought to herself as she sat in the middle of all these groups. She was.. Average. Just average. There was nothing special about her. She wasn't smart, she wasn't gorgeous; she definitely wasn't a nerd, though.

Utau sighed none too lightly. She didn't seem to fit in anywhere. She wouldn't be accepted anywhere.

"Cheer up, Utau!" Iru said irritably. She was getting a little tired of Utau moping around.

Utau sighed again. "What's the point, Iru? There isn't one. I don't have anything in my life."

Eru watched Utau sadly.

It had been this way ever since her brother went away. He was her world. He was supposed to be with her forever. Through thick and thin. Was it all just a part of her imagination? No. Siblings are supposed to be with you. Someone you can always rely on. Good times and bad. What was Ikuto doing? Looking for their father? Ha. _He had all this time to find us, Ikuto... _Utau closed her eyes. _He never came looking. I wish you'd just stop.._

It didn't help that he had joined an orchestra either. Now she'd barely ever get to see him. But he was only pursuing his career, so she felt that it wasn't all his fault. However, she was still lonely without him. He barely returned any of her texts she sent.. He just.. Didn't care any more. Has he forgotten all about his little sister? She loved him.

Utau refused to cry. Never would she let tears out at school. She knew about all the rumors that could start. The every-day gossip. It didn't interest Utau. She couldn't ever believe those half-wit rumors.

Utau didn't have many friends, either. All of them were either delinquents, stuck-up snobby chicks, or.. They just plain didn't like her. She was unusual; she sure was. She wore her hair in two long blonde pig-tails. She had violet colored eyes, and looked somewhat frightening, considering she didn't speak very often unless spoken to, sometimes not even then.

She had always had a little bit of passion for singing, but it just didn't fit in. What were the chances she'd actually become famous? The thought sometimes made her laugh it was so ridiculous.

And her guardian characters? They only confused her even more. They were both so different. They couldn't seriously be her would be self. She was nothing like either of them. Also, she could only pick one of them, right? Wouldn't the other disappear then? But they're going to eventually disappear anyways.

"You'll find who you want to be one of these days, Utau-chan," Eru smiled hopefully.

"Yeah! We'll help you!" Iru encouraged even more.

The words of her small charas gave her a little hope, surprisingly. She gave them one of her rare smiles. "Thanks, guys."

**-At the end of day-**

Utau gathered her belongings and waited until the hallways cleared to leave the school. She hated going in through big crowds. She always tried to stay out of everybody's way, but she almost always ended up crashing into someone.

The teenager walked the practically empty halls with her head downward, staring at the floor. The feelings of sadness, loneliness, and depression gained control again.

Iru and Eru easily kept up with her slow walking; she was in a daze.

Utau froze in her tracks when she reached the outside world and just stared at the ground like it was some sort of staring contest.

Worry flooded into the guardian character's minds' as they threw themselves against her back.

Utau's head jerked up to stare straight forward. She was so lost, so confused.. She had been zoning out like this ever since her dear brother had (pretty much) abandoned her. She knew it wasn't intended for it to be like this, but she couldn't help but feel this way. It was inevitable.

"What the hell's wrong with me?!" Utau yelled into space and took off running out the double doors.

"Utau-chan!"

"Utau!"

"Where could she go besides home?!" Eru said worriedly.

"Nowhere," Iru replied bluntly. "It'll be fine."

The two characters left the scene, heading home.

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A/N: Review if you want more. ^^


	2. The Meeting

A/N: Allergies. Are. Killing. Me. I hate my nose being so runny & stuffy. _ Erg. Anyways.. ON WITH DAH CHAPTER! ^^

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"W-What?! S-She's..."

"Not here!" Eru finished Iru's sentence.

"Let's think.." Iru tried not to panick. "What's the next place Utau would go?"

"Ramen shop?" Eru suggested.

"Good idea, let's move!" Iru declared, flying out the window, Eru following behind.

-----------

Utau sat ontop of a hill near her school. She was picking apart a small, pink flower. "I'm not wanted anywhere... Just an idividual that stands out.. No one of importance."

She looked up at the blue sky; she was amazed of how it was so cloudless today. Usually it was full of clouds. She came here sometimes after school to watch the clouds, finding it interesting to make out the various forms the cloud could take on.

-----------

"Dammit, you liar!" Iru shouted at Eru for being wrong.

"I-I'm sorryyyyy!!!" Eru cried out.

"Where else could she be?!" Iru screeched.

"What's the matter?" A voice asked. It was certainly no voice Iru or Eru had ever heard.

Iru was too impatient to think straight. "Who the hell are you?!"

"The name's Daichi!" The green-haired guardian character introduced himself cheerfully. "I like sports, but soccer the most!"

"Ugh.. I don't care. We have to find.."

"Who?" Daichi interrupted, not pointing out that she had asked him.

"Don't interrupt me, curse you!" Iru snapped.

"Our owner, Utau-chan.." Eru answered herself.

"You lost.. Your bearer?" Daichi asked just to confirm the situation.

Iru shouted angrily, "No, you idiot! She ran off!"

"Okay, okay! No need to get so mad," Daichi chuckled. He was obviously a very very very laid-back chara and wouldn't get so frustrated... Except maybe in sports, but that was pretty much it.

"So you'll help us?" Eru asked hopefully.

"Of course!" Daichi winked.

Eru and Daichi both did a thumbs-up. "LET'S GO!"

Iru groaned. Two entergetic idiots were too much for her.

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Utau was lying down in the grass now, her eyes fixed on the sky. Nothing else. Just the clear, blue, cloudless sky. There was nothing particularly interesting, but it somehow calmed her down a tad. Enough to let her relax.

She closed her eyes once they were beginning to ache from staying open so long. Rolling over on her side, she could see some of the flowers blooming. "Maybe you'll find something worth living for.."

Out of the corner of her pupil, she could see her two guardian characters, that appeared to be with another. She figured it was just some friend that had come to help search. Sighing, Utau got the will to get up and run farther away from them. They would probably be finding her soon, and she wanted as much time as possible to be alone.

Utau kept running and running; she didn't have a destination. Before she could run out of breath, she crashed into someone. Probably shouldn't have been staring at the ground while she was running.

Gritting her teeth to bear the impact, she opened her eyes to look up and see a boy, who was a bit younger than her. He had dark olive green eyes and firebrick-colored hair. He wore the middle school's uniform, in which the jacket and pants were black, and the tie was green.

"A-Ah! S-Sorry!" Utau stuttered, picking herself up off the ground and dusting herself off.

The boy laughed. "I was going to help you up, 'ya know."

Utau tried her best to think that she wasn't blushing, but she knew she was. She had always been bad with boys. She had never dated once, and she was a teenager.

"I didn't need any help." Trying her best to remain calm, she turned her head stubbornly away from him.

He ignored this comment. "You looked like you were in a hurry to get away from something. Is there something wrong?"

Utau would've laughed if she wasn't trying to be cool at the moment. Like she'd actually tell her thoughts and feelings to a stranger. "Why do you care? I don't even know you."

He laughed at her again. "Well then, smartass."

Utau's eye twitched. "Shut up, idiot!" This was her side of Iru. The defensive, violent side.

"Feisty girl, aren't you?" He teased even more.

This guy was really pissing her off. She didn't know him from anywhere, but he was definitely irritating her. She had had a horrible day; she didn't need some jocky player boy to make it even worse.

Not hearing a comeback, he grinned. He loved it ever so when he stumped people. "So, what's your name? It's not every day I meet a high school princess."

Princess?! She was anything **but **a princess. She lacked popularity and people barely ever acknowledged her existence.

"It's not really any of your business," Utau attempted an uninterested sigh.

"I'll tell you mine if you tells me yours," He urged on.

She glared at him. "Why would I care about your name? You don't even go to my school, therefore your name wouldn't really matter."

"Aren't you a social little butterfly?" He chuckled.

No, no she was not. She always came off as distant to people. Utau was definitely not a people person.

She finally caved in, "Utau Hoshina."

"Great! My name's-"

"KUKAIIIIIIII! THERE YOU ARE!" A chipper little guardian character was practically hurtling torwards them when he crashed into Kukai's arm.

"Utau-chan! There you are!" Eru greeted Utau with a angelic smile.

"You worried us for a while, Utau," Iru added, already feeling her mood becoming calmer.

Utau forced a smile back to them. "S-Sorry." She looked at Kukai, who was prying Daichi off his arm.

"So you have two guardian characters?" He asked when he finally got his happy little would-be self off. He knew it was uncommon for a person to have more than one.

"Yes. Wait, you have one too?!" Utau asked, feeling like a dumb blonde afterwards just because she hadn't noticed.

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A/N: I know it was a stupid ending. DX While I was typing this, I was thinking of how awesome it'd be having Eru and Iru as my guardian characters! They're such good little charas. x3 By the way, please take time to review! ^_~


	3. Thoughts

A/N: Two updates! ^^ I'm so proud of myself, lol. I hope you like this chapter!

"Wait, he's yours?!" Iru asked after Utau.

"He sure is! Isn't he awesome?" Kukai said, patting Daichi's head as if he was an animal.

Daichi scoffed. "Pfft, I'm the bestest!"

Utau stared at Kukai. She had never met anyone with a Guardian Character. Besides her brother, of course. It felt good to have someone to relate to in that way. She had been a freak sometimes because she had spoken out loud to them before, and people just stared. Utau hated being at the center of attention. It made her uncomfortable.

"Having two must be twice as annoying," Kukai snickered.

"Shut up! Don't act like you know how it is. It's very irritating," Utau crossed her arms.

Kukai raised a brow. "I bet so."

"Are you callin' us irritating?" Iru asked.

"No of course not! Utau-chan would never mean that!" Eru said very seriously.

"Haha! You're irritating," Daichi teased.

Iru punched his arm as hard as she could, despite her small size. "SHUT UP, PUNK!"

Daichi whined. "Owwwwww! She hit me!"

"You're acting like children," Utau huffed.

"Guardian Characters are just like children. I've had Daichi for a long time. They're very helpful though," Kukai smiled at his would-be self.

Utau let her arms fall to her sides. What were they useful for? Just character changing? Other than that, they were just flat out annoying.

All of a sudden, some middle school boys called out to Kukai.

"Yo Kukai!" One yelled.

"Is that your girlfriend?" Another shouted.

Kukai and Utau both blushed at this.

"Dammit," Kukai cursed silently. He didn't want her to know he was single. It was just embarrassing. It wasn't that he couldn't get a girl, it was just that none of them quite fit his tastes. They were all either too preppy, weird, or just... Ugly. Kukai was picky.

"We have soccer! Hurry up!"

Kukai grunted. "See ya.. Utau, was it?"

Utau just nodded, at a loss for words.

"See you later!" The sporty middle schooler called out to her as he caught up with his friends.

Utau gave a simple wave of her hand. He had annoyed the hell out of her, but she was somewhat flattered that he had actually remembered her name.. That he had actually taken time to associate with her. It made her feel nice inside.

"I don't like that guy or his annoying Guardian Character!" Iru snorted.

"They seem nice~!" Eru said, completely saying the opposite of Iru.

Iru squinted at the angel Guardian Character. "No one needs your input!"

Eru frowned, but didn't say anything else.

**-x-**

Utau plopped down on her bed, her long blonde pig-tails sprawled across the bed. She was in her pink night gown, which was very elegant looking. It was comfy and soft.; she adored it.

"Today was quite eventful, wasn't it, Utau-chan?" Eru spoke, floating by Utau.

Utau didn't reply. She was thinking of too much. Her life was bland and boring. There wasn't much to it. She got up in the mornings, went to school, and came home. It was like that every day. But today was different. She met someone. Maybe someone she could call a friend.

After a long time, Utau finally said, "That kid.. He's popular, isn't he?"

"Maybe. He looks like a ladies' man," Iru grumbled.

Utau blinked. She had never been friends with someone popular. Popular people didn't even look at her twice. One glance and they just forgot about her. What a nobody.

"Do you think he thinks of me as a friend? Be honest," Utau said, looking intently at her Guardian Characters for a truthful answer.

Iru and Eru both sweatdropped. "Uhh.."

Utau squinted in annoyance. "Answer me!"

"Well, we don't really know him all that well," Eru said, playing with her extremely small fingers.

"So far," Utau sat up on the bed.

"Probably," Iru said, not wanting to give an exact answer just yet. For all Utau knows, he could move away and never be seen again.

The blonde crossed her legs. "But what good is it to be friends with a middle schooler? It won't help me in high school."

"It's better than nothing, Utau-chan!" Eru reminded her with a bright smile.

"Yeah... You're right. Maybe I'll see him again tomorrow."

With that, Utau fell asleep and her Guardian Characters did the same except in their eggs.

A/N: Sorry it's short. T-T Anyways, please reviewwwwwwww!!! =)


	4. Encounter

A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. ^^" but I think you'll like this chapter! =D

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The next morning Utau's alarm went off, waking her up immediately. _BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! _It was too loud. She sent her arm flying towards it, knocking it onto the floor. It didn't stop beeping.

Eru quickly flew out of her egg to turn off the alarm. "Good morning, Utau-chan~! It's a brand new day!"

Iru was still asleep in her pink and purple egg.

The blonde rolled over in her bed. "I don't wanna get up!"

"But remember yesterday... You might see that dreamy guy again!" Eru smiled.

"I might.." Utau rubbed her forehead. "Wait, dreamy?"

Eru just nodded happily.

Utau was slowly motivating herself to get up.

Meanwhile, the angelic guardian character went over to her sister's egg, making a big mistake without knowing so. "Wake up, sissy~!"

Iru busted out of her egg. "I TOLD YOU NEVER TO CALL ME THAT YOU KISS-UP OF A GUARDIAN CHARACTER!"

While Iru chased Eru with a small needle, Utau got ready for high school. This was the same rountine she went through every day. It helped her to remember that she might see Kukai again, and that he might change her boring schedule.

As soon as she grabbed her bag, the three were out the door.

When they were about halfway to school, they spotted some middle school boys. Utau could easily pick out Kukai's spiky hair. _Oh no... _

"HEY! There's Ku-" Eru was pointing before Utau grabbed her, practically squeezing the poor guardian character to death.

The blonde tried to coolly pass the boys head down, with her right fist still clenched, keeping Eru quiet.

She could feel herself freeze when she heard a particular voice call out, "Yo, Utau!"

Utau would've turned, but her feet seemed to be stitched into the ground.

Assuming that she was listening, Kukai responded with, "Come play some soccer with us!"

Utau slowly found the will to turn. She stared at him and his friends in disbelief. They didn't seem to care that they had just asked a girl to join them. _No, no! It's because you're a girl, stupid Utau. What boy would care if a girl played soccer with them? But wait... _She didn't have the first clue about soccer.

Caught up in her thoughts, she was speechless when Kukai approached her.

"Hey.. It wasn't a question, Hoshina," He reminded her.

Utau froze again as she looked at him. He looked the same. The same entergetic, headstrong boy she had met the other day.

"Heads up!" One of Kukai's friends called out, kicking the ball rather hard with the side of his sneaker. It was sent spiraling straight at Utau.

Seeing a black and white soccer ball close to her face, she closed her eyes and shielded it with her hands, catching it perfectly with them.

Opening one eye, she was shocked to see that she'd actually caught it. _Phew..._

"You can't use your hands," Kukai smirked at her reflex.

Utau nailed him in the head with the ball. "I don't care! It was hurdling torwards my face!"

Feeling like he had a hollow head, he caught the ball with one hand after it bounced off his head. "You're a cheater, Utau," He smirked again, followed by laughter.

His friends all joined in.

Utau's face was burning. "W-What are you laughing at?"

"Utau-chan~! You're going to be late!" Eru piped up.

Without giving it a second thought, Utau turned on her heel and darted torwards her school. Not because she was worried about being late of course; she just wanted to get away from there. Having guys laugh at you hysterically isn't the greatest feeling.

Throughout the whole day, Utau worried if anyone from her school saw the boys laughing at her. She wondered if someone would confront her and tell her so. She would probably die of embarrassment.

Like usual, the ordinary Utau Hoshina went through the day by herself. No friends to accompany her, just herself. She ate lunch by her lonesome and did her schoolwork quietly.

When the day came to an end, Utau packed up her belongings and began to head home.

"What a day! Huh, Utau-chan~?" Eru exclaimed.

She nodded even though her day was pretty much the same, despite the early encounter with Kukai.

"Hey Utau!" Kukai said, emerging from behind her, looking like he'd run a long way.

"Where do you keep coming from?" Utau questioned, still mad at him for laughing at her.

"School," He answered casually. "Also, sorry about the soccer thing. You were hilarious, though!"

Utau twitched. _Again, what was so funny? _She thought irritably, but decided it would be best not to ask.

"Anyway... How was your day? You look worn out," Kukai said, walking beside her.

Utau wasn't worn out. She barely ever was. She had a lot of extra energy. The only things she worried about were her brother. She had pretty much lost contact with him, though, considering he didn't return her calls or text her back.

"My day was okay, I guess. I don't see why you're concerned," Utau replied.

"Just wonderin'," Kukai said, looking up at the sky. The sun was just now setting. It was pretty.

While glancing continuously at Utau, Kukai couldn't help but notice she had a rather lonely feeling to her. She wasn't talkative, and she didn't seem to be comfortable around people.

"I bet you have a lot of friends."

"Huh?"

"I said... I bet you have a bunch of friends. You gotta be popular, right? It takes skill to catch a soccer ball like you did," Kukai smirked at the last part.

"Not really.. I mean, uh... I don't have many friends," She looked down as she walked.

"Really?" Kukai said. He had originally assumed she was popular because she was so gorgeous. Maybe she was too conceited to have friends, he thought.

Utau shook her head. "No. I'm not what you'd call social," She admitted.

"It's not that hard," Kukai said. "All you have to do is be yourself! Don't worry about what others think."

Utau sighed. "It's not that easy for me. I'm just not used to it. People are too judgemental."

"I won't judge you," Kukai smiled.

The blonde nodded and smiled, almost feeling tears come to her eyes. "Thanks, Kukai. I wish I could be more like you."

"You can only wish," Kukai smirked, flipping his hair.

Utau let out a hearty laugh. _I haven't laughed in a while.. Have I? _

He realized right then that her smile was as gorgeous as she was.

"Well, see ya," Utau said as they stopped at a corner to go their seperate ways.

"See ya, Utau. Maybe I'll see you over the weekend," Kukai said. He wouldn't mind seeing her around.

"Y-You wish," Utau said, trying to say it better than him.

Kukai put his hand up as he walked away.

Utau smiled to herself. Her new goal was to not worry so much about what people thought of her.

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A/N: Sooo was I right? 8D Did you like it? Did you love it? REVIEW! :)))


	5. Love You Not

A/N: I was so amazed when I saw the last time this story was updated was a YEAR ago. :O if everyone's not forgotten it, enjoy! ^^

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The young blonde's heart nearly stopped when she saw the plane land on the freeway. The plane her brother was on. She hadn't seen him in such a long time. Ikuto never changed much. Eru and Iru were excited, too.

"Ikuto-san!" Eru started looking around immediately after the plane's doors opened.

Utau pushed her way through all the people. Some crying, some talking, some laughing. She had received a rare call from her brother last night saying he was coming for a show. He had waited until now to tell her because he wanted it to be a surprise. Utau expected as much. He could've been lying, but she wasn't going to be the one to question it. She would be happy to see him no matter what.

The blonde felt herself tremble as she spotted darkened blue hair. But he had someone on his arm. Someone fairly shorter- pink hair, first thing she noticed. Who the hell? Why wouldn't Ikuto tell her about this girl?

"Who is that?" Iru spoke Utau's mind.

Eru silenced for a moment, being very sensitive of her bearer's feelings towards Ikuto. "Maybe she's just a friend?'

That was a load, Utau thought, but she didn't say it.

Instead, she ran up to Ikuto before he could reach her and hugged him, regardless of who was watching.

"How've you been?" He spoke as if he'd just seen her the other day.

There was so much Utau wanted to say to him. She ignored the girl for a second.

"Ah," Ikuto stepped back. "Utau, I'd like you to meet Amu, my girlfriend." It felt okay to call her that.

"And this is my sister, Utau," He said, observing Utau's expression. She looked blank.

Utau felt like breaking down sobbing, but she stayed strong. For Ikuto's sake. How could he not tell her about this? She never knew he was in a relationship. So he leaves her, never bothers to call, then has a relationship with an underaged bitch, Utau judged, who he never tells her about.

"Uh- Nice to meet you," Amu said nervously, holding her hand out, then quickly retrieving it and pulling it back behind her head.

What a girl, Utau thought. She couldn't even give a proper handshake. Ikuto had some terrible taste. Utau wasn't going to even try to confabulate with a girl who couldn't even present herself right.

Utau definitely didn't see what Ikuto saw in her. All throughout the evening, even when they were at dinner, Amu acted nervous and clumsy. Utau could understand the clumsiness, but the girl had cacology to the max. She had absolutely no personality. Usually Utau wouldn't mind, but when it came to her brother, she was protective. She didn't know how he stood her. Utau hated her.

"So, how is it around the world?" Utau asked with a sassy tone to her voice.

"It's alright," Ikuto took a sip of his drink. "Lots to see."

"What do you think, Amu?" Utau asked, struggling to not roll her eyes. Utau could only guess Amu came with him wherever he went. A downright drag.

"Oh, um, it's fine... Uh.." Amu looked around, as if to find something else to say. She shakily reached for her drinking glass, knocking it over, ice and all, in Utau's lap.

Utau might as well have been Iru just then. She stood up and wiped her dress vigorously. "You moron!" She almost said something else. "You did that on purpose!"

Amu stood up also. "N-No! I swear, I didn't! I'm so sorry!"

"You just ruined my dress!" Utau yelled, their situation becoming a sight for eyes.

Ikuto stood up lastly. "Utau. Lower your voice. You're overreacting."

Utau felt like screaming in her brother's face, but instead, she roughly grabbed his arm and pulled him outside for a word.

"Why did you do this to me?" She finally cried that night.

"It was just an accident. Amu didn't mean to-"

"Not that, you idiot!" Utau said violently. "You left and never told me about her. Or anything. It's like you don't even care about your little sister any more." He was making her miserable.

Ikuto stared at her in uncomfortable silence for a minute. "Of course I still care about you." He reached for her, but she smacked him away before he had a chance to grasp her. "Don't touch me." That was the first time she'd ever turned down any affection from him. It hurt that he'd rather take up for Amu than her.

Utau glared at him. All those nights she'd spend in agony just worrying herself sick over him. Sadness and sorrow were replaced with anger. She didn't want to see him. She had wanted to know if he was okay. He didn't care for her. She just cared for him. He'd rather date an unflattering mess. Utau turned away from him.

"You're not my brother anymore!"

Leaving those words stranded with him, she ran as fast as she could in her high heels. Her dress was still wet. Her mascara smeared. Vision blurred by salty tears. Eru and Iru chased after her, but lost her in the crowds.

"Hoshina!" She heard a yell as she crashed into a person. It was a wonder she hadn't fallen and busted her head open.

She cringed for a second and then looked up, seeing firebrick colored hair. Oh god. He was a magnet for crashing into.

"What's wrong?" Kukai asked, startled. "What happened? What'd I miss?" He could see she'd been crying. He was never good with crying people.

Utau just sobbed uncontrollably, partly because of Ikuto and partly because her throbbing headache she now had after crashing into Kukai. She finally collected herself.

"I'm fine," Her voice was still shaky.

Kukai looked startled still, wondering what happened to her. He was still in his soccer uniform, after losing a rival game. He wasn't in the best mood either, but his happy-go-lucky personality showed through.

"You don't look fine," Kukai said cautiously, fearing she might take it as an insult.

Utau froze when she heard familiar voices.

"Where do you think she went?"

"I don't know. It's ridiculous, though."

"I don't know why she'd just run away like that."

"She's always had feelings for me; it's getting kind of old."

Composure shattered.

"Hide!" Utau didn't need to tell Kukai as she pushed him into a bush along with herself. As confused as he was, Kukai stayed still, letting the blonde shove herself against him.

"Feelings for you?"

"Yeah."

Utau tensed as she could picture the disgusted looks they'd given each other just then.

Kukai looked at Utau. "You like him?"

"Yes," She whispered as they passed.

He stepped out of the bush, aching from the impact, not seeing why he had to hide. "Is that why you're upset?"

Utau nodded, wiping her eyes only to get an ugly black stain on her hands.

"Let me help you with that." The soccer star reached for her face, gently wiping off the smeared makeup Utau had tried so hard to make look nice. It was all good for nothing.

Utau winced and stepped back. She thought about walking away, but then she realized that this boy was her closest link to the world. She never had anyone she could rely on, besides her charas. If she turned away now, she'd be smashing any chance of friendship with anyone.

"It's not like I had a chance with him anyway," Utau sniffled. "he doesn't love me at all. He just worries me to death and doesn't even call. It's like I don't exist."

"Sounds like a player," Kukai frowned.

"No no, he really likes that girl. Just not me. I can't blame him. He just never tells me anything anymore," Utau about closed down again. "- my brother would never play anyone."

"That's your brother?" Kukai asked dumbly. "Huh? How? Why?"

Utau shot her head up at him. "Yeah. I have feelings for him. Problem?"

"Uhm, not at all." Kukai rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He knew something about her wasn't right. The way she never smiled or laughed, like most girls did whenever he just smiled at them. He was so dreamy, they thought.

"But now I never want to see him again," Utau lied to herself, remembering her words. She could never mean that. Ikuto was her only brother. She couldn't just forget him and move on. Even if he liked some boring, plain girl. Even if he'd never choose her. Even if he'd never call her to let her know he was okay.

Utau looked like she was fixing to cry again, so Kukai put his arm around her protectively. "He's gone now. No worries."

It was all worries.

The blonde contemplated on what she should do next. Her place would be the first and easiest for Ikuto to check. She didn't want to face him.

"Wanna get away for a while?" Utau was surprised by the sudden question, but she happily agreed.

"Are you sure it's safe to be up here?" Utau wobbled slightly as she balanced herself on the roof of a hotel building. It wasn't that high up, but you could still break your neck falling off the side.

"Positive," Kukai grinned. It was where he always came when he needed someplace to cool off. He slid down the edge carelessly (could have easily broke something), so he could lie down.

Utau ever so slowly made her way to him. He pulled her down finally, almost giving her a panic attack. No, she wasn't scared of heights. No, she didn't wanna be on a roof at almost ten at night.

As she grew more accustomed to the surroundings, she found the place to be quiet and peaceful, set aside from Kukai's overactive chatterbox.

He was pointing at the sky, talking endlessly about his sports life. What that had to do with sky, Utau had no idea. She was getting sleepy.

Kukai, using one of Utau's long pig-tails as a pillow, was also beginning to tire. "Hey, Utau. What do you want to do in the future?"

"Be happy," She answered honestly with a yawn.

Kukai shifted, finding the roof stangely comfortable. "I'm sorry you're not happy now."

"Don't be," Utau gave him another two word answer, but meaning it. "I've been living like this for forever."

"You can always change it," Kukai adjusted himself a little. "Life's what you make it."

The blonde had never believed sayings like that. They never helped her in life. Then again, nothing really helped her in life. Her life was one big blah, all going downhill from when Ikuto decided to leave her.

"I'll miss him," Utau said under her breath, wishing she could shine like the stars above her head.

"'Ya think they're still looking?" Kukai asked, fluffing her hair behind his head.

"Probably," Utau said emotionlessly.

The two quit talking for a long time.

Kukai looked over at her. "I bet he cares about you. Especially since you're his sister." He was still shocked at the sibling thing, but he didn't want to judge her. Who knew what all she'd been through?

"You'd think." Utau said dully and thought back to the day he left.

* * *

A/N: Okay, so, ending? I think there will be one more chapter. I've noticed in my stories I'll go for a long time without updating even when there's still so little/so much to be written. I guess I'm like some reviewers, and don't want my stories to end myself! Lol! xD Does that make sense? o-o Sorry if it doesn't.

Anyway, love you all who review.


	6. Wake Up Call

A/N: Happy summer! Welcome to the final chapter of Nothing Special. I'd been contemplating a few different endings to move forward with and I hope I chose the right one. Enjoy. ^^

* * *

When the blonde teenager finally woke up, two nosy guardian characters were automatically up close and personal in her bubble, as if her face were a magnet.

"It's about time!" Iru grouched.

"Oh, Utau-san, we were so worried! So so! We checked everywhere and-"

"Save it," Utau said, slowly willing her legs to hold her weight as she stood and walked past them. "I was with Kukai. No need to be worried."

"Not any more there's not," Iru firmly held her attitude.

"Did you know that Ikuto-san and Amu-chan kept looking for you for an hour and a half?" Eru tried.

Utau scoffed provocatively. "Couldn't spare more than an hour, huh."

"We really were worried, Utau," Iru reminded her as Utau went towards her now-ringing phone.

_They'll get over it, _was all Utau thought when she picked up her phone with a dull hello.

"Utau, thank god I finally got ahold of you," Her brother's voice sounded from the other line. He sounded like he usually did, but maybe a tinge of worry behind the unbreakable exterior. Utau couldn't tell. She didn't really care any more.

When she didn't speak, he did. "Where did you end up going? We checked everywhere."

"We?"

"Me and Amu," Ikuto answered, happy to hear her acknowledge him, even for a one-word response.

"Listen, Ikuto, I appreciate everything and all. But you really hurt me," Utau figured she better confide something in him, or she wouldn't be able to live with what she was about to do. All she needed were the magic words.

"I know, Utau, I know. But I never meant to." His voice was delicate and tired sounding, like "_she" _was standing over him.

"Then why didn't you tell me about your girlfriend?" If anything, she wanted answers. Not short ones, but real ones. It felt sickening to have your own brother not even seem to care about you most of the time. Not even have the respect to give her updates.

"I just.. Didn't want you to get all worked up over something that was no big deal," Ikuto said carefully.

"Something I couldn't handle when you know how I am? When you know how much it'd hurt me?" She was getting mad now, and there was no getting around it. Sad time was finished, and the flames were only growing.

"What? No Utau, you're getting the wrong idea," He half-sighed as if he had been over this a thousand times.

Almost seeing red, Utau shouted. "It's always me, right? It's never you. Hell, you never think about anyone but yourself, do you?"

"Utau-"

_Click._

He had barely gotten the words out when - in an instant - all her problems. Gone. There was no more room for excuses. Her ears could only hear so much of them. That was considered her revenge. For all the times he never returned her calls or so much as looked at her texts twice - it felt good. Like a weight lifted from her shoulders.

If she hadn't known better, she would've said that she was living in the moment. All of a sudden, Utau felt the need to do something reckless. Tell someone. Have someone be proud enough for the both of them.

Dashing towards the one place she knew he'd be, she didn't even hear her charas tagging along behind her, determined not to lose her again.

Right before they were about to kick the ball for a much-needed practice, Utau ran onto the soccer field and pushed past two players to get to Kukai.

"I did it!"

Kukai looked startled. "Did what, Hoshina? What are you doing on the goddamn field-"

"I'm done with Ikuto!" She confessed heartily, not knowing what to do with her hands she was so happy. "I hung up on him just a few minutes ago and-"

Kukai called a quick time out, followed by groans, and pulled Utau onto the sidelines.

"Let's try this again," The uniformed teen said, "just this morning? What'd you say?"

"I told him basically to stay out of my life and I didn't care what he did!" Okay, so maybe that was exaggerating a bit, but that was exactly what her hang-up-on-him had meant to sound like.

"Congrats, Hoshina!" Kukai high-fived her, glad she could get over this stage. After talking with her last night, he realized how bad off she was with her life. She felt like she had accomplished nothing, and he figured that she didn't need Ikuto.

"Thanks!" Still giddy with excitement, Utau felt like bouncing up and down and was only stopped when Kukai said what he did.

Running a hand through his hair, he looked at the blonde. "How's about you be my date to a party this evenin'? We can reminisce," he joked.

Utau glowed. "Of course I will!" It was only adding fuel to her excitement. Out of all the girls he could be picking, he was picking _her._ "But what will I wear..." trailing off, Kukai suggested it would be a good idea for her to go home and figure that out.

"Meet me at the park around seven!" Kukai yelled after her as she ran back to her house.

Being jeered at by his teammates, he felt uncomfortable getting back onto the field.

Back at home, Utau was having trouble deciding her look.

"Are these ribbons too much?" She asked, flicking one out of her face.

"No, Utau-san~ not at all~"

"Yes. They make you look childish."

With a grunt, the blonde took out the ribbons and replaced them with ordinary hair ties.

While her reflection stared back at her, she realized she hadn't been out in a while. Except for the other night with Ikuto. And she didn't want to count that.

"I don't look so bad," Her thoughts were spoken outloud while two charas quietly agreed.

"It's 7:10," Iru spoke suddenly.

"What?"

"It's 7:10," The devilish chara repeated, annoyance clear in her tone.

"Shit!" Utau cursed, pulling her mini-handbag together fast and making a run for the door.

She tried not to run, but she ended up speed walking.

"Slow down~" Eru panted, finally settling with holding onto her owner's shoulder.

Kukai's eyebrows raised when he saw Utau and she was glad that he was already waiting for her. "You look nice."

She could feel his eyes scanning her silky black dress and her fancy neck wrap and her high heels. Her makeup had been applied modestly and her hair was in place. "W-What are you looking at?" stammering and sounding like an idiot, she knew she had said the wrong thing.

"Just take the compliment, Hoshina," He groaned, winking at her.

Confused, she couldn't help but stare at him. He wasn't dressed as fancily as her, but he looked fit enough. For an outing.

"Ready for the party?"

"Party?"

"Yeah," he blinked innocently. "I told you it was a party."

"Right, right," Utau said, standing a bit closer to him.

He took her hand without permission and she could hear Eru and Iru snickering. Eru muttered something about love.

When they arrived, not a far walk after, Kukai leaned so she could hear better. "Stay close to me. And don't drink too much."

Utau didn't know how to take the last part, considering she had barely been to parties being in her teen years. It sounded terrible, but she was glad she wasn't addicted to alcohol or anything. "Don't worry about me."

The blonde had been content with holding onto his upper arm, but he insisted on latching arms. As if she were a golden medal on display or a special artifact that needed to be shown off.

He said something about introducing her to some of his friends. Probably the same ones who had laughed at her that one time-

"Souma," Someone whistled. "Please tell me that's your sister."

Not being sure if it was a compliment or not, Utau turned red and she was thankful for the partial darkness.

"You wish," Kukai retorted, punching the other guy in the arm. "This is my date. Utau."

She was surprised he refrained from using her last name.

"Well nice to meet'cha, Utau," For whatever reason, he said her name with a raise of his eyebrows and leaned in to whisper something to Kukai, causing him to look hysterical.

Utau wasn't sure if she liked this place or not - if she wanted to stay or go - speak up or stay quiet.

After the guy had left, she asked what he had said.

"Nothing important," Kukai mumbled, leading Utau to a big table so they could sit. "Want a drink or somethin'?"

"Sure," She said slowly, knowing herself and Kukai were both underage for drinking. Then again, it was a party and they were both pretty mature for their age, right? She was still in deep thought when Kukai came back with two cups of punch. Only punch.

"You don't drink?"

"Nope, it's usually only my dates. That's when I take them home afterwards. They usually can't handle it."

"Oh," the blonde breathed a sigh of relief. "I don't either. The taste is bitter."

"Agreed," Kukai gave a toast between the two of them. Not shortly thereafter, four other teens decided to sit down and join them assuredly.

Utau assumed that Kukai knew all of them since he greeted them cheerfully.

"Heeey," One girl said, trying her best to get a good look at Utau without staring. She looked older than Kukai, more like around Utau's age. "I've never seen her before."

They weren't drunk, but they looked like that crowd that usually was.

Utau still failed to utter her first words of the evening to anybody else.

"You're right about that, Mona," Kukai smiled, his eyes shining. "This is Utau."

So called Mona looked at her and smiled. "Well then, I like your dress, Utau!"

She hadn't heard a compliment from anyone in a while besides Kukai and she wasn't sure what to say at first. "Uhm, tha-anks." It came out weird but it was good enough for a response.

"You got a good one looks like, man," A guy with blondish-brown hair spoke next. He looked like a jock. If he went to her school, it was probably what his label would be.

Utau raised a brow. "Oh, does he date around?" she knew she hadn't forgotten how to speak English!

The guy laughed. The girl did too. All five laughed, Kukai nervously, minus Utau.

"No, not at all," The guy wiped an eye as if he had laughed too hard. "In fact, he needs to date more in my opinion. Before you, that was."

Utau looked skeptically at Kukai, learning something new about him that she never thought would be true.

Kukai rubbed his head, embarrassed. It was what he was afraid of. But now that he knew more about her background, he felt better about it. "No big deal, Utau. Don't look at me like that."

The blonde finally allowed herself to laugh. "I know I know. I knew that." she didn't. In fact, she knew very limited about him. Except that he was a sports junkie and a people guy. Completely opposite from herself.

"Did you now," Kukai nudged her.

Figuring she'd talk some, she looked at Mona. "Do you go to the high school?"

Mona shook her head, brown curls shaking. "Held back. School's always been a bitch for me. Should be there next year though. We'll hit it up then."

Utau seemed dazed for a moment. Was she accepting her just so fast or..? Being quiet at school, no one really acknowledged her. She had not cared much to acknowledge them, either. Maybe she had needed friends all along. To help get her mind off her brother and other things that just worried her.

"Right," Utau looked at the other girl. "I like the way you did your makeup."

"Me? Thank you," The girl looked surprised, but Utau liked the look on her face. Like she had made her feel good about herself.

"Speaking of, how did you do yours? It looks so natural!" Mona piped up.

"And your hair," The other girl added.

The three boys looked at each other with bored looks and stood up to get some more whatever they wanted to get away from the girl-talk. Kukai was glad Utau was actually enjoying herself though. From what he knew, she needed something like this.

"Your girl's totally hot, man," Kukai's friend said once they were out of hearing range. The music was getting louder. "Where'd ya find'er?"

"Ran into her one day," Kukai answered truthfully. _Literally._

Hours later, the place was so crowded that it was hard to get around. People stumbled, people yelled across the house, music blared, once even a fight broke out. But it was quickly broken up by two tough-looking guys. Utau would've guessed they were body builders.

"You ready?" Kukai had to shout in Utau's ear to get her to hear.

Utau looked at him for a moment with a confused look until she finally said, "Oh. Yeah. Let's go!" Utau shouted back.

"Great," Kukai said as he walked both of them to the door and out happily. He didn't even bother to say goodbye to his friends. They were too out of it to know left from right or up or down or whatever else.

Kukai examined Utau when they were far enough away from the wild party. "I was about ready to beat it outta there, weren't you?"

The blonde felt herself nod. "Totally. People were getting crazy."

Kukai agreed. Silence consumed them for most of the walk. They were grateful for the calmness of the night. The whole night still seemed to be echoing in their ears.

Utau stopped once they were infront of her place. She turned to her date. "Uh, Kukai.. I just wanted to let you know..."

He stared at her as if he knew what was coming. But he notioned for her to go on.

"I had a really good time tonight." The words were truer than true. A better time than she would have had sitting at home doing nothing but staring at chipped paint. "And thanks for.. Introducing me to those new people and taking me and being my date and.."

Kukai cut her off. "You were _my _date, Hoshina. And anytime. I had a good time, too. Seeing you happy was the best part."

Utau stared at him, bedazzled by his charm and way with words when she herself fumbled with words. 'Thanks' was the only thing she could manage to say.

The teenagers looked out into the street that was deserted. As if everyone was asleep and the only source of life was the crazy party they had just been at. SIlence suited them just fine, however.

The blonde took to staring at her feet. Her heels were beginning to make her feet cramp, making them feel as if the heel had gone into the foot itself.

"Tonight was the first time," She didn't even realize she was speaking or that Kukai was still listening. She was speaking straight to the ground, avoiding eye contact. "that anyone has ever shown me off in public. Been almost, proud.. To be seen with me. Held my hand like I was special.."

Kukai was smiling at her every word. She was beautiful.

"You listen here, then," Utau met his gaze upon hearing him speak. "It was my absolute pleasure.. No, honor, to take you out tonight, Utau Hoshina. And I would love to do the same thing next Friday night."

Utau started to feel tears of happiness threaten to expose themselves. She held them back remarkably. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay." She repeated, this time with more confidence and a smile.

"Then it's a date."

* * *

A/N: I'm not too good at mushy endings, but tell me what you thought overall of this story. Feedback is appreciated. ^-~


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